Karen McCartney on The Value of Design
10.10.24

Essays is a compilation of musings that examine the broad yet impactful role design plays in contemporary life. Leading design writers, commentators and thinkers are invited to contribute an individual perspective – accepting or challenging the notion that design does or should embody greater “value” by drawing on personal experience, expertise and knowledge. Contributors are encouraged to explore design’s influence and application in domestic and commercial settings, across history, culture, politics, and its power to impact all aspects of life from small gestures of the everyday, to the future and sustainability of our planet.⁠

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We’re delighted to share the musings of Karen McCartney, as she reflects on the value of design as a lifestyle-enhancing medium and circuit-breaker of the mundane. For the uninitiated, Karen is an acclaimed author, editor, curator and supporter of exceptional architecture, interiors, craft and design. Her extensive career in print media is paralleled by her authorship of several best-selling interiors and architecture books, including Iconic Australian Houses and Superhouse, which have been translated into successful exhibitions at the Museum of Sydney, while Perfect Imperfect formed the basis for a curated exhibition at the Nishi Gallery in collaboration with Hotel Hotel, Canberra. The Alchemy of Things; Interiors shaped by curious minds, showcases the homes of collectors, architects and artists. Karen continues to impart her design wisdom as Architecture Editor for Belle magazine, and Editorial Strategy Advisor for Est Living.

Portrait by Michael Wee.

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The Value of Design by Karen McCartney

After two hours in a broken-down hire car on a dusty Portuguese motorway slip road in the dying heat of the day, 100km from Porto, things were getting a little testy. No water, increasing need of a toilet and phone batteries draining before our eyes, we were beginning to catastrophise.

Fast forward to the arrival at The Largo, a recently opened hotel in a very old part of Porto with architecture by Frederico Valsassina and interiors by Space Copenhagen, we felt a heightened sense of relief. Architects talk about ‘prospect and refuge’ and we experienced a strong sense of refuge in this solid, authentic, considered and beautiful building. If one aspect of the value of design is how it makes you feel, vulnerability and anxiety were replaced with security and the sensory blessings of a good feed and a great bed (not to mention oak floorboards as wide as the Mississippi.) Design value is heightened by the experience of contrasts.

Not to go on too much about The Largo, but the shower stall had just two taps—one for each shower type, hence rendering complexity simple. I couldn’t help but recall a friend with a French chateau, which had been previously owed by a Dutch entrepreneur. Into these high-ceilinged majestic rooms he had installed clear plastic shower pods with all sorts of baffling dials – I could pick up a local French radio station but not get the water going.

We live in an increasingly intuitive world and design utility, where innovation solves a problem and improves lives, is an irrefutable goal. We place a high value on design quality as we become more discerning about the things that we allow into our lives but once accepted (and mastered), we are brand loyal. Personally, I don’t have the mental bandwidth to change from my Apple iPhone unless they disappoint me in some fundamental, unforgivable way – which is not outside the realms of possibility.

I remember the launch of a new Qantas premium economy class seat designed by David Caon where my recognition of its attributes was somewhat academic. A couple of years later as I settled into my Qantas seat ready for the 24-hour long haul, I appreciated every ergonomic decision, every thoughtful detail, every extra centimetre of space that had been eked out for my benefit. Context is everything.

In a similar vein, I admire the work of industrial designer Benjamin Hubert at Layer for his ability to interrogate a problem and mine for solutions that combine technology, materiality intelligence and sustainability. The GO wheelchair is a human-centric vehicle that is custom calibrated to the needs of the user – their input gathered through the GO app allowing the specification of optional elements. Equally forward focused is the work of designer Yves Behar who created the Snoo – a robotic crib fitted with microphones, speakers and sensors embedded into its structure that rocks with a ‘womb-like motion’ and generates a soothing white noise. With all these things – you don’t care until you really do!

At an elementary level, good design endures; consider the pleasure of a well-crafted umbrella on a rainy day, a perfect coffee from a Duralex glass or using a pair of John Pawson salad servers. Designer Jasper Morrison has made it his mission to celebrate the super-ordinary in his shop in London’s East End. Selections include items such as the Giannina La Tradizione Coffee Maker and the 1970s Ellepi Klizia designed whale-shaped stapler. With his own designs for brands such as Iittala, Emeco, Flos and Maruni, there is nothing superfluous – he is a master of refinement and reduction and with this rigour comes design longevity.

But alongside all this utility there is also a great joy in the aesthetics of design where it moves away from everyday function and into the realm of surprise and delight; a flourish, a mismatch, an excess or even an awkwardness.

I love the work of Martyn Thompson – his hand-decorated ceramic and glass pieces, his painterly woven wall art and his wallpapers and rugs are all anchored in collaborative craft and shaped with a depth of narrative that gives them an emotional charge. Design can also push into the realm of art. I am thinking of Trent Jansen’s recent show, Boundless, at Mint for the London Design Festival (along with artisans Tanya Singer, Errol Evans, and Johnny Nargoodah) with the one-off pieces inspired by Australia’s landscape and its First Nations culture. Or the extraordinary design capability and marquetry work of Adam Goodrum and Arthur Seigneur with ‘The Kissing Cabinet,’ shown this year at Tolarno Galleries – a mesmeric tour de force of colour and motion.

In these instances, utility and design democracy are not top of the list but the world is an undeniably enriched, more cultured, more interesting place as the result of how imagination dovetails with manifest skill and expert expression. We need awe, joy, excitement and creative stimulation to sit in parallel to life-altering innovation and incremental improvements in the everyday. To give design value, it requires dedication to problem solving, creative intelligence, a big dose of the care factor and an ability to see the world beyond what already exists – because otherwise it is just more stuff!